Vibrio Bacteria Death Shows Why You Should Beware Of Raw Oysters

Raw oysters may be a delicacy. But how delicately will they treat you? (Photo by Neilson Barnard/Getty Images for the New York Culinary Experience)

The world may be an oyster, but you may want to make sure that you cook it first. As the recent death of a 71-year-old man showed, there are real risks of eating raw oysters. Here is a WTSP News report of the death:

The oysters apparently were tainted with Vibrio vulnificus, which is considered a flesh-eating bacteria and lives in salty water.

In case you are wondering, "flesh-eating" is not a term of endearment. For example, a "flesh-eating date" would not be a good one. Vibrio vulnificus got the nickname because after it infects a wound, the bacteria can then start consuming the flesh around the wound and then spread rapidly to rest of the body, eventually killing about 1 out of 7 people and leaving many survivors with scars or amputations.

Eating this flesh eater before it eats you won't help, though. When you consume raw oysters or any other undercooked seafood that contains Vibrio vulnificus, the result can be a gastrointestinal infection with bad watery diarrhea, as opposed to good watery diarrhea, along with fever, abdominal cramping, nausea, and vomiting. If the bacteria get into your bloodstream, really bad stuff can happen: dangerously low blood pressures and shock. Over half of those with bloodstream infections have died, according to a review of U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) data on 459 reported cases between 1992 and 2007. Interestingly, 85.6% of the cases were male; this aspect of the infection is discussed later in this review. Of 180 cases from 2002 to 2007, most (92.8%) had eaten raw oysters and most (95.3%) already had some kind of disease that may suppress the immune system.

Chances are that if you consume raw oysters you won't become infected with Vibrio vulnificus. Such cases, fortunately, are quite rare. However, eating raw oysters can be like playing a slot machine where you won't like what may come out if you hit the jackpot. Other pathogens can be present. For example earlier this year the FDA issued a norovirus warning about oysters harvested from British Columbia, Canada, (specifically the south and central parts of Baynes Sound), which shucked. According to the Public Health Agency of Canada there were 176 cases of oyster-related gastrointestinal illness between mid-March and mid-April 2018, including 137 in British Columbia, 14 in Alberta, and 25 in Ontario. The outbreak spread to the U.S. too, resulting in at least 100 cases in California. As I mentioned previously in Forbes, this gastrointestinal virus can cause quite severe nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea in the 70% or more of those who are infected. So if you were looking for an aphrodisiac and accidentally ate a norovirus-tainted oyster, passion may not be the main thing that will be flowing.

Whether raw oysters can actually serve as an aphrodisiac is still up for debate, but that's another question for another time. There are plenty of other claims out there about raw oysters that have absolutely no scientific basis. For example, hot sauce or alcohol ain't going to kill pathogens like Vibrio or norovirus. Avoiding oysters from polluted waters is not going to prevent you from getting sick, although seeking oysters from polluted waters is not going to be better. You can't always tell if an oyster is safe. Oysters may look perfectly normal but still have microbes lurking in them. And avoiding oysters in months that don't have the letter "r" (which corresponds to the warmer summer months) won't really help.

The best way to prevent disease from raw oysters is to not eat raw oysters and cook them instead. Sure, many people eat raw oysters each year without getting sick. Sure, if you are otherwise healthy, you may survive an infection from raw oysters without any lasting effects. But there is the chance that you could suffer longer-term consequences and potentially even die, especially if you have liver disease, diabetes or any condition that may weaken your immune system. Is it worth the risk?